ST. LOUIS _ Almost half of the fraternities on the University of Missouri-Columbia campus are currently on probation.
Most of the violations that led to probation, as well as three recent suspensions, stem from circumstances involving alcohol abuse, according to a series of records obtained Thursday by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch through a records request.
Among the more egregious incidents in the documents is a hospital visit March 18 for a new member of the Sigma Pi fraternity who had a blood alcohol level of 0.34 percent and bruising on his buttocks from a hazing incident involving being hit with a paddle. Missouri law says 0.08 percent is legally drunk.
The incident led to the university revoking recognition of the fraternity chapter. Yet Sigma Pi initiated more than a dozen new members this semester.
According to accounts from two Mizzou police officers on the scene, the student was transported to a hospital from a dormitory after he was found largely unresponsive and clearly under the influence. Both officers noted in the emergency room that the man's buttocks were bruised.
Notes from student interviews by Mizzou administrators after the incident create a narrative for what was ruled as a hazing incident involving new members being paddled by more senior fraternity members. Mizzou found the fraternity guilty of coercing members to drink, as well as a slew of alcohol violations.
Mizzou leaders opted to suspend the fraternity for five years as long as the fraternity basically disbanded during that time. The national group declined, moving forward with rush and its own homecoming events this fall. In October, the group was banned for life from Mizzou's recognition.
"While we value our relationship with the university and recognize the important role our chapter must play in promoting a safe campus environment, we came to a different conclusion about the future of the chapter," national executive director Jason Walker said in a statement. "Sigma Pi has imposed comprehensive, corrective sanctions on our University of Missouri chapter, which both hold individual members accountable as well as focus on accountability and risk prevention for the chapter."
The documents released Thursday included incident reports for all fraternities and sororities at Mizzou from Aug. 1, 2015, through October 2016.
While 14 of the 30 recognized fraternities are on probation, none of the 16 sororities currently face similar punishment. Probation puts organizations on notice that further violations could result in suspension.
Five of the fraternities will be removed from probation effective Friday, the end of the fall 2016 semester.
Delta Sigma Phi is on probation until May 2017 after Mizzou leaders found the chapter guilty in fall 2015 of alcohol violations and "hazing activities." A parent called administrators in September 2015 and reported that his son was forced to drink and carry a "pledge pack" filled with condoms, cigarettes and gum.
"This is not the first time we've heard such things from this chapter," a Mizzou student life official wrote in an email about the parent's allegations.
According to a document from the fraternity, at least one member was suspended and possibly expelled from the group.
At least 12 other fraternities were found responsible for alcohol violations, according to the documents. In addition, Delta Upsilon and Kappa Alpha Order were both suspended or removed from campus this fall.
Many Greek life organizations met with administrators in preparation for the document release. The Interfraternity Council, governing board for Mizzou's fraternities, issued a statement Thursday about the documents.
"For nearly 150 years, fraternities have played an important role in contributing to the University of Missouri's safe, vibrant and engaged campus community," the council said in the statement. "Recent media reports are deeply troubling to our fraternity community, which is united in its strong stance against sexual assault, hazing, alcohol abuse and intolerance. These behaviors stand in direct contradiction to every one of our fraternal values, the University Code of Conduct, the law, and basic human decency."
In a recent interview with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, top Mizzou student life administrator Cathy Scroggs noted that while leaders have made progress with student organizations, each group turns over its members every four years, so the process is perpetual.
"There's sort of a 'two steps forward, one step backward' phenomenon that we're seeing," she said.
But Scroggs has hope.
"These are 18- and 19-year-olds that are learning, too, and they're testing us from time to time," she said. "Our students join Greek organizations because they want to be leaders and see opportunity. They join to be change makers, not to accept the status quo. I am encouraged by their willingness to take action."
